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Edward-Aniz Theory
One of the more controversial theories on the DMFA forum is the hypothesis that Edward Ti'Fiona and Aniz are in actual fact the same person. This page will outline the theory, its variants, implications and the available evidence for and against. The jury is still out on the theory itself, though one of its attractions is that it has the potential to make sense of a number of things which are currently inexplicable. Amber herself has refused to be drawn on the theory but has been known to watch with amusement as the argument rages back and forth. The Revelation Dan's father, Edward Ti'Fiona, and Abel's father, Aniz, apparently killed eachother in a battle. http://www.missmab.com/Comics/Vol_1194.php The Basic Theory The original, basic theory was first proposed by Anders on the DMFA forum, shortly after the introduction of Aniz. Upon noticing that he looked quite similar to Dan's father, Edward, he also realised that of all the - admittedly few - pictures of Edward currently in existence, not one of them showed his left wrist. This is the location of Aniz' Clan mark. An interesting aside is that when Cid Rewanz - who Aniz was impersonating was introduced was that he looked similar to Dan, or indeed his father. When the suggestion arose that Edward was Abel's father, Amber commented at the time that Abel and Edward have never met. However, she added that since Cid was dead, Abel has never met Cid either. Implications Abel and Dan Dan was born to the succubus Destania and Edward Ti'Fiona, who is presumed to be a Being. Conversely, Abel was born to May and Cid Rewanz, though it later turned out that Cid had been disposed of and replaced by Aniz. If Abel and Dan are both Aniz' children, it would make them half-brothers. This kind of sibling rivalry would go a long way towards explaining why Abel has a tendency to look down upon Dan while still taking great pains to protect or otherwise benefit him. It would also explain Abel's unusual reactions to the name 'Ti'Fiona' in . Destania Something which has never been satisfactorily (or indeed unsatisfactorily) explained is why Destania - who spent seven thousand years teaching other 'Cubi to torture and destroy the souls of Beings - would suddenly get the idea of marrying one, raising a child and entirely turning her back upon her previous existence. It has been suggested that when Destania entered the inn, she was deliberately targeting Aniz having finally tracked him down over a period of 375 years. This was, in part prompted by Amber's suggestion that Destania may have been faking her weakness and injuries. There remains the issue of how Edward managed to turn her away from destroying him, but that applies equally if Edward is strictly a Being. In terms of Dan being a child of two 'Cubi, it is worth pointing out that when two 'Cubi from different clans have a child, if the child inherits the 'Cubi trait, they will take after the stronger of the two clans. In Dan's case, this is Cyra Clan. Aniz Aniz' treatment of Abel appears to have left his son in an unstable mental state for a number of years or decades. Fa'Lina that Aniz is bordering insanity. If it turns out that Dan, who has a deep-rooted fear that he will become an evil incubus himself, had a psychopathic father (who possibly killed and replaced a real Edward as he did to Cid), he is going to have serious problems. On the other hand, it may be indicative of Aniz recovering his sanity over the course of nearly 400 years. Evidence For It must be admitted that there is little solid evidence for the theory, though there is a large amount of circumstantial evidence. The Implications section above covers some of these. Aniz' Appearance The main evidence is, as stated above, that Aniz in his base form bears a remarkable resemblance to Edward, with almost the same body colour, build and tail. The only real difference is the eye colour, which is easy enough to for an incubus to change. Add to that the fact that Aniz has a red clan-mark on his left wrist. Of the six currently extant strips of Edward, only one has a clear shot of his wrist - and that one has a bracer covering it, which is how Aniz used to hide his own clan-mark. One of the pictures shows Edward's wrist uncovered (at an angle we can't see) which is careless, though most Beings would assume it was a tattoo, 'Cubi being very rare. Destania See Implications above. Having vowed to destroy Aniz mind, body and soul, depicts something quite close to Destania's reaction if and when she finally caught him. The question remains as to how Aniz would have defused the situation, but that applies equally to Edward as a Being. In any case, the idea of them settling their differences is arguably no more bizarre than that of Destania marrying a Being. Timing of Dan's birth One of the interesting things which leant a lot more weight to the theory, was Fa'Lina's discussion with Aniz about his plan to raise more children, apparently in order to resurrect his fragmented clan. Appalled by his treatment of Abel, Fa'Lina from sending any further children to SAIA for 375 years, which is almost exactly the time Dan came of age. Abel's attitude to Dan When Abel first met Dan at the Academy, his behaviour was rather interesting. Despite the fact that Abel has the potential to be extremely vicious (even driving one roommate insane), he actually appears to be looking out for Dan. When Ink tormented Dan into a state of catatonia, Abel was enraged and assaulted the professor. Abel's treatment of Dan was a little harsh, but aside from the baseball bat incident (which appears to have been a mistake, as he assumed Dan would block it), everything he has done has been for Dan's express benefit, even if Dan didn't realise it at the time. Abel appears to have gone out of his way to ensure that Dan remains reasonably happy. This attitude would make perfect sense if Dan was Abel's younger brother. Also, Fa'Lina told Abel something that forced him to leave the Academy, against his wishes. We do not know what it was, but again, it implies that Abel has a vested interest in Dan's safety. Destania's Laws In strip 298, Edward leads Destania away, saying "Destania, was it?". Destania replies "You know by my laws that it's my job to destroy you." This exchange is rather interesting. It could be argued that it means Edward has no idea who she is, but if he really is an incubus, he's not going to want to let the pitchfork guys downstairs know that, so it could be an act for their benefit. Alternatively it could indicate that he's slipped by naming her, since she doesn't appear to have announced herself. Either way, the 'laws' line is interesting. Most Beings don't even know what 'Cubi are, so the idea that a Being would be familiar enough with the laws of a particular clan for her to assume he knows what she's talking about is practically ruled out 'Cubi are too scattered, too competitive between clans and too different in attitudes between clans for any meaningful central government or legal system so the 'laws' Destania mentioned must surely be specific to her clan.. This would suggest that Edward is a 'Cubi, and one who has earned Destania's ire in the past. Aniz' Crush In AS2 strip and subsequent strips, it is revealed that Destania and Aniz were romantically involved for a time, which could explain several things assuming that he later adopted the persona of Edward. Their relationship subsequently went sour following the destruction of Aniz' entire clan and his subsequent insanity through survivor's guilt. Spurned, Destania vowed to destroy him, which as mentioned above would explain her similar statements in strip . However, if he somehow managed to get the engagement back on during this encounter it would explain how he survived and went on to marry her. It is not clear what Cyra's own position on Aniz might be, but if Destania had declared him to be an enemy of Cyra's clan, it may explain why he retained his hypothetical Being identity even after marrying Destania who has obviously a 'Cubi. Though it is also possible that he did this because he was afraid of losing the place he had carved himself in Lost Lake society. Evidence Against While the theory may or may not be built upon sand, it has proven remarkably difficult to dislodge. There is nothing which has yet proven potent enough to rule out the theory entirely. Common arguments against the theory include: Aniz' Appearance There are only six pictures of Edward in total. Hence, it is possible that the wrist thing is a coincidence, in which case the entire theory is based on an incorrect premise. One of the pictures shows Edward's wrist uncovered (at an angle we can't see) which is careless, though most Beings would assume it was a tattoo, 'Cubi being very rare. Alexsi Many people have pointed out that if Edward was really an incubus, Alexsi should be a succubus. However, as the Hybrid Genetics Arc points out, just because you have a Being and a 'Cubi doesn't mean you will definitely get a baby 'Cubi out of it. As , it's possible to get a child who is magically-gifted but otherwise a regular Being instead. Alexsi may be among those. There's also the possibility the real Edward fathered Alexsi, but was soon killed and replaced by Aniz. One train of thought is that Devin J. Mernstar was also a failed attempt at siring a 'Cubi child, since his father left after taking one look at the child (and seeing no wings?). Amber has stated that Devin and Dan have no shared ancestry, however - ironically that theory may hold to be true if the Aniz-Edward theory is wrong. Barring weasel-words from Amber (which she is very good at), proof that Aniz did sire Devin would virtually rule out the Edward-Aniz theory. Cyra Clan (debunked) One of the more convincing counterarguments is that Dan was born to Destania. Given that Aniz was apparently trying to revive his dying Clan, it does not make sense that he would have a child with a succubus of a more powerful Clan. Possible explanations for this include that he had finally given up on the project, or been talked out of it by Destania. He might simply have fallen in love with her to the point at which he was willing to forgo his clan's revival. Or, he may simply not have known that Dee's clan would take precedence. As of AS2 page 53, it was revealed that Aniz had a crush on Destania while at SAIA. It is likely that his project to rebuild the clan only happened after their relationship went sour. Destania In strip , Aniz asks if Destania is still in SAIA, shortly before leaving. It is later revealed in strip that there is some kind of vendetta between the two, which again makes a pairing between Aniz and Destania improbable. More recently it has been revealed that Destania and Aniz had something going which apparently turned sour. The jury is still out as to whether Aniz managed to save himself by reviving their old affair. Abel's clan mark If Edward really is Aniz, Alexsi should theoretically have noticed that Abel has the same clan mark. Of course, since Edward appears to have vanished while Dan and Alexsi were still young, it gives her less time to have seen it (if Aniz was careful about hiding it) and more time for her to have forgotten it. Even if she remembers and realises the significance, it may be that the topic has simply not yet arisen. Death of Aniz Revealed in Strip 1192, according to the "Public Database of Adventurers", Aniz was killed by Quintinga Ti'Fiona, Alexis's mother and wife of Edward. If true, this would more or less debunk the theory in its entirety. The accuracy of the database is unknown; a known inaccuracy being its listing of Edward's second wife Destania (a cubi) by her alias Desiree Star (being). Variations and alternative theories Edward killed Aniz Prior to the Edward-Aniz theory, the fact that Abel has been behaving as though he owed some kind of debt to the Ti'Fiona line was believed to be because Edward killed Aniz, and Abel, having been sorely mistreated by his abusive father was grateful to him for this. Dan was the second attempt It is fairly certain that Aniz was attempting to rebuild his fallen clan before Fa'Lina interrupted his plans. Assuming he was keeping track of how many years he had left until the ban expired, he would have begun to try for a child approximately 25 years before present-day DMFA. This ties in neatly with Dan, but as mentioned above, there is also Alexsi, who was born to an Amazon who died shortly after her birth. If Edward is Aniz, and if he did not regain his sanity, it is not impossible that she was murdered by Aniz himself so that he could pick another wife more likely to give him a 'Cubi child. Debunked theories Destania vs Edward The original version of the Edward-Aniz theory held that Edward saved himself from being destroyed by Destania by revealing that he was actually an incubus, specifically Aniz. It has recently been revealed that Destania wishes to destroy Aniz utterly, which basically rules this version of the theory out. It has been replaced by the idea that when Destania entered the inn, she was deliberately targetting the patron. References Category:Theories